


Disconcerting

by Oldine



Series: Alders [4]
Category: Torchwood
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-08
Updated: 2018-05-20
Packaged: 2019-05-03 21:29:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 16
Words: 17,975
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14578050
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Oldine/pseuds/Oldine
Summary: The team slowly realizes they're caught in an unknown conflict. One side wants Torchwood's attention. One side is manipulating Torchwood human resources and area law enforcement to interfere with the team. Can they unravel and increasingly chaotic situation?





	1. Chapter 1

**Red Dragon Centre; Cardiff, Wales**

**Monday, August 8, 2021**

With everything, it was decided Ianto Jones would meet with Dr. Corse. He tried asking Owen about his experience with the doctor, but he insisted on asking questions about the retcon incident instead. Ianto reviewed the information from last December, took notes, and hoped there wouldn’t be a problem.

He entered the coffee shop across Bute Place from the Millennium Centre. Mid afternoon between rushes had a short line and few people sitting. Dr. Corse waited near the door to the center with her back to a wall. Ianto received his order and walked over.

“Doctor Corse,” he greeted, “I am Ianto Jones.”

She motioned at the chair across from her. “Prynhawn da.”

Ianto smiled as he sat. “You speak Welsh?”

“Enough to get into trouble.”

That was unexpected. While it could be simple manners, he wondered why. “Have you had any problems with your investigation?”

“No more than usual.”

That made him wonder more. The city attorney still argued that PD could not assist Torchwood without a court order or a warrant. Her reasoning appeared to be more complicated than she claimed. After the fertility clinic and the transportation company, the issue should have been resolved. For the same reason, there shouldn’t have been a problem to begin with. If Dr. Corse wasn’t having problems, she had connections.

“Any progress on finding the source?”

“No.” She sipped her coffee. “There might be a connection to the industrial park you mentioned. Based on what I found at the port in Dublin, exposure was accidental.” She was uncertain. “I have been unable to determine is why anyone would intentionally salvage the parasites. Or maintain them. Even as a weapon, there are simpler, easier options that are harder to trace. With fewer risks.”

“Fear?”

“I doubt it.” Pause. “It’s a puzzle. The aliens kept them aboard their ship for a reason. The only detail that stands out is biological composition. They have very strange properties. Nothing comparable in the Torchwood database.”

“Weapon, drug, folk medicine…”

“Not for humans. I checked on known aliens. I doubt a Hoix could eat them.”

If there was an industrial park connection, it could be tied to the cases they were investigating. “Genetic engineering?”

“No. Exposure permanently damages the host. It would complicated harvesting biological material. Neither the parasite nor it’s byproducts have any obvious value.”

 

**Torchwood Three**

Gwen Cooper entered Jack’s office. Secrets were nothing new. And questions she had no idea how to ask weren’t either. Seeing Jack and John together made her wonder if she should say something. They had a history Jack wouldn’t talk about. The conflict with Ianto hadn’t been completely resolved yet, although he and Jack were trying to make it look that way. Given that John was the only other member of Jack’s culture or the Time Agency available, reconnecting wasn’t that surprising. Reviving their friendship had the potential to cause a number of problems. Depending on how bad things were with Ianto, rekindling the past relationship might appeal to Jack. Even after everything. She knew first hand the bad decisions a person could make when the stress became overwhelming and understanding was needed.

“We have confirmation the other four people killed in London were associated with Moss-Probert. They were the fake bomb squad that removed evidence of alien technology from the destroyed facility.”

Jack nodded. “Any suspects?”

Gwen hesitated and Jack looked up. “Torchwood and PD still question whether you were involved. No witnesses. No evidence. CCTV for the area is fried.”

“I wouldn’t have left bodies.”

Tosh had said much the same thing. Not reassuring. “It could have been retaliation or clean up. We don’t have enough information.”

Jack nodded. “Any local updates?”

“Three small businesses closed suddenly over the weekend. One did business with Moss-Probert, the fertility clinic and the transportation company.”

“Anyone we can talk to?”

“No.” The conversations she’d had with a few other local businesses had her wondering. “Half the businesses I called asking for information referred me to their solicitors. For no obvious reason. Cattrel Industries went so far as to say that they would only provide information to legitimate law enforcement.”

“I spoke to the London office. The problem with database access is specific to us. IT went so far as to suggest that we needed office staff with computer experience.”

Gwen grimaced. “Ianto was blamed?” Unless the person was unaware of their relationship, and it was often viewed as joke in London, the insult was intentional.

“HR asked about our relationship and whether it started before or after I hired him.”

“What does targeting Ianto accomplish other than anger you?”

“I don’t know.”

Gwen had an idea, but she had no idea how to say it. “The future needed a way to ensure you would accept John. If Ianto left because of your view of sex…”

Jack stared at her a moment. “Ianto and I worked it out.”

No you didn’t, Gwen thought. Even Anwen could see it and said something. “It’s a coincidence?”

 

John Hart needed a distraction from the insanely complicated energy distribution puzzle. Repairing a mini maintenance bot sounded like a simple task. He used the work table in Ianto’s office. One complication after another made it embarrassing. He used his wrist-strap to run yet another diagnostic. Then realized it hadn’t malfunctioned. It was reprogrammed. To do what?

The door opened and Anwen entered followed by a full-sized maintenance bot. She had her wrist-strap open and was giving it remote orders. That answered one question. “Uncle Jack showed me how to use it. Somewhat.” She motioned at her wrist. “So I don’t accidentally take over the hub or something.”

“What did you reprogram this one to do?” John motioned to the bot.

Anwen smiled. “To override the Internet nanny on tablets and my laptop.”

John laughed. If she was older, he would have thought of it, assuming she wanted access to porn. “Horse websites?” He had no idea why a nanny would block those.

“And cowboy movies made this century.”

“I need to show you how to avoid conflicting instructions.”

Anwen nodded. “I have an idea for the bigger one.”

“Where are you supposed to be?”

“The garden.” She grinned. “I redirected my GPS implant through the computer. If mum checks on me, it shows I’m in the garden. And I get a notification.”

John laughed more. That sounded like him at her age. “What do you want to do with the bot?”

“Add security options. If it could offer a distraction, noise, throw something, it could distract an intruder. Or attack one.”

The humor faded. “You’re worried about Owen?”

“I’m worried about the next threat.”


	2. Chapter 2

** Roald Dahl Plass; Cardiff, Wales **

Jack Harkness waited for Ianto near the lift. A summary of his meeting was important. The nagging suspicion that someone was trying to manipulate them was equally important and harder to discuss. Any approach he mentally reviewed sounded self-serving or egotistical. 

“Miss me?” Ianto smiled. It didn’t reach his eyes. 

“Gwen said something.” It was cheap, but Ianto could ask her. “She’s concerned that the HR complaint and IT is targeting your for a reason.”

“It’s not about me.” Ianto reached for Jack’s hand. “People you care about are your weakness.” They twined their fingers together. “Using Cory against me made you question your judgment. Yourself. You’re distracted. Having trouble sleeping.” 

Jack squeezed Ianto’s hand. “We need to figure it out.”

“That’s part of the problem.” Ianto sighed. “If I said moving in together would fix it, you’d agree. It would work for awhile. Until different arguments started.” He pressed his forehead and set his free hand on Jack’s arm. “I don’t know how to fix it.”

Another idea came to mind. A counterintuitive one. “Do you want to see my other life?” Pause. “Not the sex.”

“What would that accomplish?”

Jack had no idea. “Understanding?” 

Ianto looked up. “How would watching you flirt with other people help?” 

“We could both flirt.”

Confused, Ianto asked, “Why?”

“It’s fun.” Jack gave it a moment. “When was the last you went to a club? Danced with women?”

Ianto looked haunted. “Before the Institute was destroyed.” 

And Lisa’s death, Jack thought, more than thirteen years. “Just think about it.”

“I’d rather move in.”

Jack kissed Ianto’s forehead. “Go ahead.”

 

** Torchwood Three **

After disconnecting the call, Gwen Cooper checked the police network. It looked similar to the fertility clinic. An anonymous 999 call led to a break-in. The thieves entered the office through a door without setting off alarms. Then searched the building and removed hard drives. The constables on-site described it as professional. 

Padrig Toller saw scattered technology resembling the Sanatorium Park probe situation and call it in. He suspected PD would block Torchwood’s access to the scene, so he sent pictures. Viewing them on her mobile, she agreed with the similarity. She hoped that like the river bank hoax, the items were miscellaneous trash. Rather than a distraction, she suspected this was intended to catch their attention.

Gwen looked up as the lift descended. Jack and Ianto held hands and looked less tense. She hoped that was good. Their relationship stabilized both of them and the office by default. With everything going on, they need the added stress.

“I need you to look at this.” She held out the mobile to Jack. “The office didn’t open today. Constables are trying to track down the staff for a welfare check.”

He walked over and accepted it. “Is this anywhere near the park or the river?”

“Yes and no. It’s in City Gardens south of of the park but half a mile east of the river. Maybe.”

Jack nodded. “Is Owen still here?”

Unfortunately. “Yeah.”

“Cardiff PD will have a harder time telling Torchwood London they can’t access a site with reported alien technology.”

“Dr. Corse?”

“Probably best to keep Jack away from her,” Ianto said. “She has issues with male co-workers. She mistook Owen’s attitude for sexual harassment.”

Gwen couldn’t picture that. “How stupid is she?” 

“Tosh would give you details, if you asked.”

“I will.” Gwen could understand mistaking Jack’s behavior. Whereas Owen might as well have arse written on his forehead. 

 

** Timau Tacluso Home and Business Cleaners **

Owen Harper waited until Jack entered the car park. The explanation he received for two days in the infirmary didn’t work. Why would they have an untested prototype laying around? Under what circumstances would he pick up an unidentified weapon? Gwen’s complete lack of of sympathy said something else happened. 

“Why did Ianto shoot me?” It made slightly more sense.

“Which time?” Jack parked. 

“I didn’t touch your gun.”

Jack smiled suggestively. “Ianto would shoot you for that.”

Owen emphasized, “What did I do?”

Seeing Jack hesitate uncharacteristically as the humor faded added to the growing list of questions. “You made a bad decision that resulted in Anwen getting hurt.”

That fit with Gwen’s attitude. “What?”

“Let it go.” 

Jack then focused his attention on his wrist-strap. He flipped it open and scanned the area. From his expression, he didn’t like what he found. He reprogrammed it and scanned again. He didn’t like the new results anymore than the last.

The list of questions grew. Jack’s refusal to explain the retcon incident or the case implied a loss of trust. They had their disagreements over the years. The last days before moving to London had been tense. But not secretive. Jack kept treating him as part of the team.

They climbed out of the Torchwood van and walked toward the constable standing at the door. Jack said he needed someone with London credentials. Watching Jack display an ID instead of flirt was confusing. Owen found his own credentials and waited. The formality suggested a conflict with the locals.

“It’s not Torchwood jurisdiction,” the young constable said nervously.

“We received information that alien technology was found during the initial walk-through.”

“Inaccurate information.” A plain-clothed constable stepped out of the building. “I’m DC Heaven. This is my scene.”

Jack quickly removed his mobile from a jacket pocket. “The report came with photographs. Items similar to the Sanatorium Park probe situation.” He held out his phone. 

Heaven crossed her arms. “No investigation photos have been released.”

After returning his ID, and mobile to one pocket, Jack withdrew a hand-held scanner from another. He made a production of scanning the area. He learned more using his wrist-strap. The device beeped with results. He appeared to read them.

Jack motioned toward the evidence van. “You already boxed up the items.”

Owen grimaced. That could have gone badly. Unless the person had some idea of what he was doing.

“Torchwood has jurisdiction over all alien technology.” Jack returned the scanner to his pocket and removed his mobile. “We need to review and secure the items photographed.”

“This is my scene,” Heaven emphasized.

“Owen is from the London team that secured the fertility clinic.”

Taking that as a cue, Owen held out his credentials. “Doctor Owen Harper, Torchwood medical.” 

The woman’s hesitation was worrisome. It wasn’t that she disbelieved. She disapproved. After Miracle Day, when Torchwood’s existence was revealed by international news, they had fewer problems. Most people recognized Jack by his clothes. With everything that happened in Cardiff, he shouldn’t have been questioned.

“Collecting and storing alien technology or artifacts without knowing what they are or do is dangerous.” Lecturing civilians, nevertheless police, on common sense required more social niceties than he had. “Best case scenario if something goes wrong DC, the van blows up. There are a lot worse ways to die.” He gave it a moment to sink in. “My duties often involve evaluating technology by how it killed the person who played with it.”


	3. Chapter 3

** Torchwood Three; Cardiff, Wales **

Agitated, Ianto Jones used Jack’s desk to review paperwork. John had taken over the office he mislabeled to fix maintenance bots. Ianto conceded they had a few behaving strangely. That didn’t mean he liked it. Nor the fact that John had somehow prevented him from changing the office name back.

The desk phone rang. Diplomacy, Ianto thought, and reached for it. “Cardiff Torchwood.”

“This is Mary Kimble with Human Resources in London. I need to speak with Ianto Jones.”

He rolled his eyes. “This is.”

“Mr. Jones, I have been unable to reach you about the complaint you filed.”

That took Ianto a moment. “I didn’t file a complaint.”

“I have it in front of me.” She countered.

“Ma’am,” Ianto said, and emphasized, “I did not file a complaint.” 

“If you are not feeling safe discussing it at the office, perhaps you would like to discuss it in person. We can pay for your transportation.”

Ianto set his hand over his face. “Ms. Kimble it’s not necessary.” It was a ridiculous conversation. “Can you send a copy to my account?”

“Who is this? Interfering with a harassment investigation is grounds for termination.”

Patience, Ianto told himself. “Ma’am, Jack and Owen are in the field. As it involves a conflict with local PD, it is easy to confirm. That leaves me and Gwen.” Pause. “I did not file a complaint. Please send me a copy.”

Kimble didn’t believe him. “Why would someone file a false complaint?”

Good question. “I don’t know.” Pause. “I have worked with Jack and Gwen for thirteen years. No one is harassing me. No one here filed that complaint.” Ianto gave it a moment. “You should be able to run a voice analysis to confirm my identity and that I am not under duress.”

“Please hold.” The line went silent. A few minutes later, she returned. “Please state your name and occupation for voice confirmation.”

Ianto shook his head slightly. “Ianto Jones. I am Torchwood Three office support.”

The computer clicked on her end. 

“Confirmed,” she said. “This doesn’t make sense.”

Ianto agreed. It could explain the various problems they were having. If false reports had been sent to law enforcement and not just HR. 

The hub computer beeped indicated he had mail. Ianto grabbed a tablet he wasn’t using it. “I received your file transfer.” He opened it. “Ongoing domestic violence?” That explained her insistence. “No.” Skimming, he found a disturbing description of how his and Jack’s relationship started. “When did you get this?”

“August 3rd.”

The same day someone sent him the video. That potentially explained some of the odd messages they’d received from London. “This has to be related to a bizarre situation we had that day.”

Kimble said carefully, “You received a sex tape proving your partner cheated on you.”

Ianto had no idea how she knew that. “I received a disturbing video that day. As part of a fake hostage situation. Using modified porn as proof of life pictures.” It was transferred from his account to secured storage. Four people knew about it.

“It was forwarded to HR from your office.” Kimble seemed to realize there was a problem with that.

“No. Please send me a copy.” If nothing else, it would test the new email security for videos. 

“This is disturbing.”

You have no idea, Ianto thought. 

The computer beeped a moment before the warning sounded. 

“Received.”

“I apologize for the this. I have worked HR for more than twenty-years and never seen a situation like this.”

“Is it possible to flag any complaints reportedly from this office? We have three full-time and one part-time employee here. We live in the same block of flats. If we had a problem, we would deal with it.”

“I can. I will still need to investigate.”

“Understood.”

The call ended after awkward pleasantries.

What was going on?

 

Gwen Cooper reviewed the MP murder files Tosh sent from London in the conference room. By Torchwood standards, it was unusual. She had unfortunately seen numerous forms of homicide over the years. What stood out was not only the extreme cause of death but the ease by which the victims were identified. The killer or killers wanted them known.

While framing Jack could explain it, she doubted that was the motivation. Instead, she considered how the murders could benefit anyone. It made her think of organized crime. Someone made a statement with seven brutal, unexplained deaths. Why? The suspect possibilities varied by the intended target. The most obvious was those condoning unethical experimentation. Or someone in the remaining Moss-Probert organization made an example of them for their failure. 

She hit the same wall London did. They needed information they had no way of getting. They needed more details to even know where to start looking.

The Cardiff facility was creatively blocked. Either MP was being investigated by multiple branches of law enforcement. Or a person using police resources set her up to accidentally expose multiple undercover agents.

Gwen sat back. She needed a different approach. One idea that came to mind. Lake and Starkie were at both scenes. How did they get from Cardiff to London? Drove was the most likely answer. Each had a car registered. Finding them required remotely sifting through the London PD files. Lake’s car was found in Manchester and Starkie’s was in Calais near the tunnel. The investigators had been unable to determine how they arrived in London. Both cars appeared abandoned. They had no CCTV footage nor witnesses. Calais found Starkie exiting the tunnel alone days earlier.

The unnecessary effort suggested it meant something. The bodies were found in London. They may have been abducted in other cities and transported. Or their cars were relocated. It was part of a statement against repeat offenders. Or a clue for investigators. Starkie’s car could be a reference to the transportation company. Moss-Probert could have locations in one or both cities. 

It brought reminded her of the list of possible associates. She needed to check if anyone of them connected to Manchester, Calais, or London. Two or three cities might be something. It might not. But she didn’t have a better place to start.

 

John Hart suspected he’s over stayed his welcome in Ianto’s office. Reviewing the information on the crystal egg and energy production and distribution gave him an excuse to be in the hub. Although he suspected when Steven had recuperated in the infirmary, that would be withdrawn as well.

The door opened and Anwen entered carrying a tablet. “The hub flagged a video from London. To Ianto.”

“Did you look at it?” John hoped the answer was no.

She shook her head. “It’s labeled ‘probable porn.’” She handed it to him.

“Why am I getting this?” Instead of your mother. It reminded him of the conversation the first video triggered.

“You’re like Uncle Jack.” The same reason she gave him when she wanted to talk about adults and jealousy.

John suspected there was more to it. Although he might be attributing adult motives. “I will check it.”

“Thanks.” She left without another word.

Reviewing the video reminded him he needed to find a lover. One that didn’t make homemade porn. It didn’t take much to realize that Jack’s face had been edited into it. He idly wondered if anyone checked the first one. John didn’t want to explain how he knew it wasn’t Jack to Ianto. A quick analysis provided the necessary details. He then used facial recognition on the Internet and confirmed the source.

Then the unpleasant part. John used the computer to locate Ianto in the garden. “Hey.”

“What?” 

“Anwen received an email notification. A video from London.” An awkward conversation regardless of when and where he was born, John thought. “A system analysis determined it’s fake.” He handed Ianto a tablet with the details. 

Ianto hesitated. “A hotel room?”

“In Vegas.”

“Not the same,” Ianto said quietly.

“If it makes a difference, Jack loves you. Now. The original time line I came from.”

“Why do you care?” 

You wouldn’t believe me, John thought as he turned and walked away.


	4. Chapter 4

** Timau Tacluso Home and Business Cleaners; Cardiff, Wales **

Jack Harkness had an uneasy feeling walking through the office. He knew something was wrong. After several times through, it occurred to him. The cleaning business had no stored cleaning supplies nor uniforms. That made him look closer at everything. Company pictures were generic and probably fake. The copier looked old but barely used. He found an incredibly organized supply closet. Jack started taking pictures with his phone.

“What are you doing?” Owen asked quietly.

Jack lowered his voice. “This office looks fake. I want Ianto’s opinion.”

“OCD office manager?”

“Generic pictures, no promotional material, accomplishment board or employee of the week. No charts. Or clutter.” Jack sent the pictures.

Owen smiled. “You just described the hub.”

“It’s not a business.”

“I checked the website earlier.” Owen quickly found it on his phone again. “It has employee pictures, and services offered.”

While it wasn’t what Owen meant, it gave Jack an idea. “Are they all attractive?”

Owen eyed the site. “Escort service?” He clicked through pages. “It could be. There is an emphasis on individual pictures. Cleaning packages are listed without prices.” 

Jack’s mobile rang. He quickly found it. “Hey.”

“That copier is a bad model. Inefficient. Difficult to maintain. Check the ink cartridges.” 

Jack walked back to the copy machine. It took him a couple minutes to figure out how to open the panel. He didn’t need to check the ink. It hadn’t been cleaned in years. “It’s not functional.”

“Do you remember how Tosh would kept her desk? Look for pictures, personal items. Anything that says a woman works here.”

“It’s all generic.”

“Unless the company’s offering industrial clean up, or other heavy labor cleaning, the odds are the office and cleaning staff would be primarily women.”

Jack looked around. There was no indication the office was run by men either. That tended to be equally obvious. “The office is fake. Thanks.”

DC Heaven walked in. She looked uneasy. “You need to leave.”

Jack turned. Something about her tone said it wasn’t her decision. “We have everything we need.” He motioned to the open copier. “This isn’t a real office.” From her comments earlier, she hadn’t realized it yet. 

Best case scenario, it was a creative escort service. The break-in had different implications with that information. If it was connected to Moss-Probert or the fertility clinic, it could be human-trafficking. PD needed to check on all the employees. Both prostitution and trafficking could result in the company killing the witnesses.

Heaven exhaled sharply. “That could explain why the staff suddenly left Cardiff over the weekend.”

Jack motioned to Owen and they left without argument. Inconsistencies bothered Jack as they walked. The business, regardless of the type of con, offered no explanation for the alien tech. The people who raided the office wanted Torchwood attention. The similarities to Sanatorium Park suggested a connection to Moss-Probert. If they understood the motivation behind the attack on the building. There had to be more to the situation.

Jack tapped his ear com as he climbed back into the van. “Ianto?”

“Yep.”

“Make a copy of the cleaning company’s website. We need facial rec on all the employees.” Another thought occurred to him. “Compare with missing persons reports. Including Interpol.”

“Human-trafficking?” Ianto asked.

“I don’t know.” Jack wondered if he was missing something. There were any number of better options than reporting it to Torchwood. Unless it involved aliens or alien technology, they would transfer the case. He tapped off the ear com.

Jack started the van and drove. 

“Genetic research and experimentation is expensive,” Owen commented. “Where are they getting the money?”

“Escorts wouldn’t be that profitable in Cardiff.” Even with human-trafficking.

“Custom genetics could be. What if they’re not escorts? Surrogacy could be lucrative. Or genetic engineering. The women could be advertisements.”

“Why Cardiff?” Then Jack remembered the possible Rift connection to the research. “Have you ever heard of genetic researchers offering talents? Music, science?”

“Sperm banks offer donor profiles. The theory being a parent with an impressive skill is likely to pass it on.”

Could they be offering psychic children?

 

The brief conversation she overheard gave Gwen Cooper an idea. The tunnel could be used by human-traffickers despite protections in place to prevent it. The cleaning company didn’t appear to have suitable lorries. The transportation company did. Trafficking changed the type of businesses she needed to check. And increased the number of resources available.

While prostitution was not the only related crime, it was tracked by various branches of law enforcement. Everything from massage parlors to escort agencies offering additional services. Even if tied to organized crime, they tended to be localized. Investigators noticed when typical offenses varied.

What stood out was the decrease in prostitution arrests. More than one constable mentioned the possibility of a serial offender. Birmingham reports mentioned vigilantism. Manchester had so many missing women with solicitation backgrounds, vice was doing welfare checks. As Torchwood had no reason to track prostitution cases, or missing persons cases without a specific concern, they hadn’t received the information. 

Gwen checked missing persons statistics. Birmingham had a national low for missing women. Other sizable cities had increases. Checking France took longer as the information was in French and mechanical translation wasn’t the most reliable. A few cities had a notable change, Paris in particular. Like Manchester, they were actively tracking women with prostitution backgrounds.

She didn’t know what to do. If she had information to share, she would have contacted the police departments. While she doubted it was a serial killer, it could be perceived that way. It would be hard to convince anyone human-traffickers were grabbing street-level prostitutes.

“Ianto,” Gwen said over the ear com, “Are Jack and Owen headed back?”

“Yep.”

An ugly picture suddenly started forming. They had genetic researchers, unethical human research, and a large number of missing women. Until that moment, she hadn’t thought to check missing men associated with the sex industry. It wasn’t as obvious, but it was there.

“Do we have files on genetic research and engineering?” Gwen couldn’t remember a comparable investigation. “What facilities, equipment, medical specialties are involved?”

“No. Owen would know how to find it.”


	5. Chapter 5

** Torchwood Three **

John Hart entered the infirmary. A computer notification told him Steven was awake. The updated medical information was good. It didn’t explain the weapon used or his injuries. One puzzle in a growing list. When he recovered, they needed to focus on accessing the situation. Either they had bad information or another group was manipulating time also.

“Nanogenes didn’t work?” Steven sounded weak.

“Partly,” John stopped next to Steven’s cot and reviewed the scan readings. “Your injuries had residual energy that interfered.”

“Is the kid safe?”

John could only hope. “The Sisters didn’t provide details.”

“Of course not.” Steven groaned. “That would be sane.”

“Would your new friend be willing to answer questions?”

“What happened?”

John had no idea what was happening. Which was the problem. “Someone is feeding this office information about a network of researchers and possibly human-traffickers. It’s possible that group is retaliating. Someone sent London HR a fake domestic violence report. The same day as the fake hostage situation. It included a fake porn video with Jack edited into it.”

“How is tad-cu coping?”

“Him and Jack are having issues.” John suspected it affected Jack’s self-confidence. 

Steven grimaced, pushing himself up. “How does anyone have the information necessary? When I joined Torchwood, their relationship was viewed inaccurately. It was later that tad-cu’s accomplishments were publicized.”

“Torchwood black ops. Anyone who’s worked with Jack could know it’s more than a casual relationship.”

“It’s more than that. Targeting tad-cu’s insecurities…” Steven trailed off. “He worked at the Institute. Someone he knows.”

“How many people survived the Cyberman attack?” John never had any reason to look it up, and Anwen only mentioned it in passing. It happened years before she was born.

“Not many.” Steven paused to think. “Black ops went underground after the attack. Some used it to fake their deaths.”

“Genetic experimentation in Cardiff suggests an attempt to create or research Rift abilities.” That didn’t fit with the missing women, John thought, unless the researchers were looking for specific genetic traits. He explained what he found in Gwen’s investigation files. 

“Manchester?” Steven shakes his head slightly. “Nothing connected to genetic research. But it wasn’t until Anwen took over London that I got a seat at the table.”

“We were sent here for a reason. And probably told what we needed to hear.” John took a moment. “Why us?”

“I’ve asked myself that repeatedly.” Steven laid back down. “I don’t have an answer.”

“When you’re able, we need to review everything about the current situation. And figure it out.”

Steven paused to think. “One possibility is that Anwen trusted us. She got paranoid in the end.”

John doubted it was that simple. “Or she knew us. Anwen could have easily predicted our behavior in varied situations.” Which meant she knew Steven wouldn’t be able to cope. Which reminded John to ask about the child rescue situation. “Why did the Sisters contact you?”

“For information on missing women in the last six months.”

“The prostitutes?”

Steven looked like he missed something. “No. Attacks on domestic shelters. Each had a child in care.”

 

** Hughes Flats; Cardiff, Wales **

Gwen Cooper walked into Jack’s flat. “Owen went home.” 

Anwen set a box down in front of the bedroom and walked out. Gwen watched her daughter wondering what she was missing. She looked around the main room and realized there were a few boxes and a garment bag hanging on the office door.

“Is Anwen helping Ianto redecorate?”

“She volunteered to help Ianto move in before I changed my mind.” Jack’s tone was hard to read.

Gwen suspected that had something to do with what she said to Jack earlier. It wouldn’t fix their problems, it would likely make them worse. Mentioning it wouldn’t help. All she could do was hope she was wrong. Their relationship never made sense to her.

“A contact on the Manchester PD called back. I told him I was interested in the number of missing.” It was worse than she originally thought. “The first attempts to file missing persons reports were three months ago. The police didn’t take it seriously.” She exhaled sharply. “The media found out this morning from an anonymous source. A new tabloid site claims a mass grave was found in London and cited the Moss-Probert murders as a cover-up.” Pause. “It could be an attempt to force the police to investigate the missing women.”

“Or cooperate with us.”

That was another issue. “I had more than one contact tell me I had to request information through formal channels. London Metro said all requests had to come from Torchwood London. They received a memo that they can’t provide information to regional offices.” She shook her head. “I called Torchwood and asked. The person said she didn’t know anything about it and would get back to me. It’s been four hours.”

“Did Ianto mention HR?”

Anwen entered carrying another box with Ianto behind her. Gwen waited until they left again. “No.”

Jack explained the fake HR report and the video. “It might have been taken seriously.”

“The timing.” Gwen wondered. “Is it possible we’re caught in the middle? Someone is directing our attention toward the researchers. The fertility clinic had an anonymous caller. Alien tech was left at the cleaning company. Attacking your, or our, credibility could be an attempt to deflect our investigation.”

“Cory said a businessman contacted him for a networking event. It went south because he knew me.” Jack paused. “Percy Heitt. Cory said he was based in Russia.”

Gwen explained what she’d discovered about Lake and Starkie’s cars. “What are we dealing with?”

“This could be part of the future’s manipulations. Intentionally or not.”

“Another team? Would John have mentioned it?”

“Or he might not know. It could have been done with cells. Like terrorists. A group only knows what they need to. Including conflicting missions.”

“How would someone plan that?”

“I don’t know.”

Anwen returned and set a blender on the counter. “Is John still at the hub?”

“What? Gwen asked.

“John, is he at the hub? Ianto needs furniture moved. With Jack, John and dad, it won’t take all night.”

“Steven’s still in the infirmary,” Jack said.

Anwen smiled at her mother. “I guess you’re moving furniture. I’ll go get dad.”


	6. Chapter 6

** Torchwood Three; Cardiff, Wales **

** Tuesday, August 9, 2021 **

Steven Carter checked the time on his mobile. Ten AM should be a reasonable hour. He found the number Eilene used to call him days earlier, and hesitated with his finger over the connect button. While she’d shown no signs of it yet, dealing with the Sisters had similarities with defusing bombs. This group chose bold, open tactics. He would return the favor, he concluded. He tapped it. 

Four rings later, Eilene answered, “Good morning, gorgeous.”

Steven wondered if she did that to intentionally throw him off. “Morning. I need to ask a few questions.”

“A date sounds great.” She laughed.

Steven groaned, he couldn’t help it. “We found a possible human-trafficking situation. It ties into some ugly research.” Pause. “Do you know anything about a Manchester PD welfare check on women with solicitation backgrounds? Or an unexplained increase in missing prostitutes?”

The humor disappeared. “You’re only hearing about it now? That started three months ago.”

“This office focuses on Cardiff. We found the information investigating connections to local cases.”

“The  escort agency that disappeared over the weekend?” Eilene’s tone suggested she knew about or was involved in the office raid.

“We don’t know yet. It could be connected to several or no current cases. We were looking for something different.” 

“Start before the disappearances. Dead pimps, closed businesses, empty streets.” Eilene wasn’t happy. “One of the teams was preparing to take down this arse with Russian and Eastern European slaves. Sick shit. He used a variety of fake businesses.” She paused to get her temper under control. “From nowhere, he’s dead. His goons are dead. All the women are missing. No evidence. No CCTV. Nothing.”

“Manchester?” That suggested the operation was somewhere else. Whichever group might be responsible, they didn’t advertise.

“Yeah.”

Why hadn’t Torchwood flagged it, Steven wondered. When that many people disappear, something ugly was happening. Sometimes it was Torchwood jurisdiction. “Can you send me details?”

“Yeah.”

“Thanks.”

The entire situation bothered him. There were quieter ways to abduct people. War zones, refugees, illegal immigrants, the homeless. Targeting people with paperwork meant someone would notice. He found it unlikely that multiple law enforcement agencies knew and Torchwood didn’t. That suggested direct or indirect involvement. How could Torchwood possibly benefit from the inevitable PR nightmare?

 

Jack Harkness sat behind his desk eying the tablet. Resigned, he switched it on and accessed the secured video that Ianto received after the fake hostage situation. The video from HR led to various questions. Who created the video? Why was a fake video sent to Torchwood when the real one would have been harder to discredit?

The answer had to be the people in the video. Both women were identified as targets for extortion or rather their families. Unless inaccurate, that left the other man. He was a friend of one of the women. Jack remembered that much. Facial recognition required analysis and image adjustment. That revealed editing. Possibly to conceal the man’s identity. Although that would be the easy answer.

Seeing a clear image didn’t trigger any additional memories. But it made him wonder the best approach to running facial recognition. If he didn’t want Torchwood seeing his face, that suggested someone might recognize him. That meant facial rec needed a different approach. While it was possible to run an anonymous Internet search, that took a lot of effort and wasn’t guaranteed. The Global mainframe offered a better option. But required the man to be in the files.

“Computer, activate intercom.” It clicked. “John, are you here?”

“He’s not.” Steven still sounded weak and tired.

“I need a Global search.”

“Bring it to the infirmary.”

Anwen injected, “I can run it.” 

“Steven might be able to answer questions.” Jack stood. 

“I have information about the missing persons case.”

After the brief conversation, Jack headed to the infirmary. The walk gave him him time to think. Assuming the man in the video was somehow involved, and not a coincidence, Jack considered the possibilities. Someone made the video. If he was the target instead of the women, that involved different questions. A few stayed the same. Why send it to Ianto? What did anyone hope to accomplish? He had no idea. 

The infirmary door slid open and Steven looked up. He sat with a pile of tablets on the table next to his cot. “How bad is it?” 

“A man might be connected to Torchwood London.”

“Anwen could have run that search,” Steven said. “My duties with Torchwood London often started with the same questions. ‘What is your grandfather doing?’” Pause. “You don’t know me or trust me. Asking John says you wanted someone that wouldn’t asked questions. Doing it public says it’s urgent.”

Jack had already concluded that Steven was who said he was. Faking it took more time and effort than it was worth. “Possible black ops.” Steven was right about trust concerns.

“The first video?” Steven gave it a moment. “It doesn’t take much to guess the person targeting tad-cu knows him.” He flipped open his wrist-strap. “Sex and nudity are worthless as a weapon against someone with your reputation.”

“Thanks.” Jack previously found it funny. 

Steven held his hand out. “I need the picture.”

Jack handed his tablet to Steven. Seeing a near replica of his own wrist-strap was disconcerting. On top of everything else. “I agreed to a copy?”

The computer chimed indicating the search started. “Reluctantly.” Steven looked up. “Imagine how bad it would have to get before you’d consider it?” 

“And John?”

“Would have done anything Anwen asked.”

That unfortunately fit with what Jack already suspected. Although Steven said what was expected. With John, Jack at least had an idea of what he was dealing with. Even after everything. He’d barely spent time with his grandson. Alyce wouldn’t have allowed last December if she hadn’t needed emergency surgery, and been unable to object.

“Would you?”

“No.” 

Jack suspected the opposite was true. Which could explain why Steven was sent back with John. That type of loyalty required extreme circumstances or insanity. What kind of person could inspire it? Jack needed more information and doubted Steven would provide it. That left creating a psyche profile based on her known actions. Which would have been anticipated, if it mattered.


	7. Chapter 7

** Torchwood Three; Cardiff, Wales **

Ianto Jones carefully arranged his desk. It was nice to have a place for his family pictures. With Rhiannon’s kids in college, he rarely saw them. Seeing the pictures reminded him to call his sister. She’d want an update on Anwen. He needed to check with Gwen if she was waiting until Anwen returned to school to continue daycare.

Before talking to Gwen, he needed to check inventory and see if she left any notes. The ongoing problems caused the chores to accumulate. He checked his laptop. He had notes from Gwen, Rhys, Anwen and even John. It had to be the first time Jack hadn’t sent him a list.

Another time, Ianto reminded himself. They would figure it out.

Hoping for something amusing, Ianto selected Anwen’s list. He wasn’t disappointed. It had a picture of Grumpy Cat from social media with a list of needed safety precautions including catnip traps and Nerf water guns. Leave it to Anwen to turn getting shot into a joke. The actual items on her list were groceries.

Gwen, as expected, needed more ammunition and had concerns about her car. Rhys had building maintenance questions and asked if one of the mini bots could be brought to his office for basic repairs and some cosmetic work. After staring at the option for longer than he cared to admit, he checked John’s list. He wanted service manuals for mundane appliances and equipment. Ianto couldn’t help but wonder if John fixed things when he was stressed.

Fixing things. That made him think about the faking cleaning company for some reason. Ianto retrieved the office pictures Jack sent. The worthless copier couldn’t be fixed. Since it was unlikely the staff ever used it, they didn’t break it. Where would someone get it? Unless it was in long term storage for a prop, they got it from somewhere. Intentionally buying unless equipment would be memorable. It could also lead to other fake offices.

Ianto quickly found his business spreadsheet. He kept notes on where to buy different items and equipment. It included companies not to purchase from and why. Bad second-hand office equipment was on the list. Justifying new equipment sometimes required explaining why used wasn’t possible. 

As Ianto considered who to call first, another thought occurred to him. An inoperable copier proved the office was fake. It was a dumb mistake to make. Unless the buyer was unaware it wouldn’t work. If the person selling the copier knew they wouldn’t use it nor think to check, he didn’t need to give them one that worked. There weren’t a lot of people with the guts to con human-traffickers.

Ianto smiled and reached for the desk phone. Unless they intentionally bought a worthless printer, he knew who sold it them.

 

With the amount of activity in Manchester, Gwen Cooper knew there had to be something. According to the police notes, standard police work didn’t find anything. She reviewed the details to make sure it was thoroughly. Not everyone considered criminals to be worth the effort. She didn’t find anything obvious. There were some lax reports, but other officers covered the gaps.

The last case listed involved a broad daylight abduction of a woman in front of her two children. They weren’t sure if it was related because of the drastic change in MO. They had witnesses and partial CCTV footage, but no number plate information. The men wore some type of masks over their face that obscured pictures. One mobile image showed the man’s face glowed. While it was impressive for normal technology, it didn’t mean it was alien. 

Gwen worked her way back. She understood the frustration evident in the reports. They had nothing. People were willing to talk and they had nothing. The two things that stood out were the complete lack of usual evidence and no indication of collateral damage. Professional abductors with well planned abductions. The amount of time, effort, and manpower necessary didn’t make sense.

Agitated, she paused to think. She need something. Anything. She did an Internet search for prostitution and genetics. What stood out was the possibility that prostitution, particularly generational, could develop immunities to sexually transmitted diseases. In the early 2000s, a study in Kenya may have found sex workers immune to HIV because of continual exposure, but the research appeared minimal. 

That suggested a few possibilities. The researchers wanted certain types of antibodies. Gwen couldn’t believe there was enough money in treating STDs to explain the situation. Or exposure. A new disease someone wanted to keep quiet or research. Or a failed treatment. None of which explained the extreme approach. Unless it involved something incredibly unethical or had an alien origin.

Gwen checked for STD statistics prior to the abductions. Nothing stood out. She checked on new treatments. A few options, but none looked promising. Then she focused on medical facilities. A clinic opened in a poor neighborhood. It offered services that would appeal to sex workers. Or sexually active people in general. 

It could have been an unfortunate coincidence. She started comparing details with the local offenders looking for a connection.

 

John Hart eyed the security panel in the garage. It had new requirements and offered instructions in Welsh. He never learned the language, but he heard enough of it from Anwen. He used his mobile to translate, suspecting it was Ianto’s way of retaliating over the office name. 

Revenge gave him something amusing to think about as he walked down the hall. A few options that wouldn’t disrupt the office came to mind. After he corrected his login again.

After passing through the big door, John grabbed a tablet from one of the workstations. He checked Steven’s medical reading first. Than checked system reports. Several of the maintenance bots had malfunctioning software. Anwen must have tried multiple new programs. If badly programming bots was the worst of it, they were lucky, he thought. At her age, he caused a lot of trouble learning how to manipulate computers and machines. Some of it was intentional.

With Ianto gone for the day, John decided on the workbench in the office. Unlike the garage door, he had to use Global to force access. What pissed you off, John wondered. When he finally had access, he briefly wondered if it was booby-trapped. He used his wrist-strap to scan the room before entering. 

Summoning the malfunctioning bots was simpler. What were you trying to do, John asked himself. Then he found the notes Anwen made. She liked pranks. He couldn’t blame her. The hub was safe but boring. Her sense of humor wasn’t dangerous as far as he could tell.

The door slid open a few minutes later and Steven entered using a cane. He looked pale and weak. John moved around the work bench and grabbed a chair behind the extra desk. Reluctantly, Steven sat. The walk from the infirmary must have been exhausting.

“Why are you up?”

“Gwen found a location in Manchester.” Steven motioned toward a tablet. “Jack won’t listen to us. Ianto will stay and Jack will take Gwen thinking he can protect her. I hope he can.”

John passed Steven a tablet.

“If I’m right, we need to prepare a response.”

Anwen’s modifications gave John ideas. “We can use the bots.” 

“To do what?”

“That one is programmed to play music and throw glitter. It could potentially throw stun pellets.”

“Glitter? Anwen, I hope.” 

“That one can override Internet security. It could be redesigned to remotely disable security.”

Steven eyed it a moment. “She doesn’t like an Internet nanny?”

“It blocks entire horse sites and cowboy movies.” John reviewed another scan of a bot. “She tried to set that one up for 3D holographic images. Of a Nature show.”

“Mustangs?” Steven groaned.

John chuckled. “It could be worse.”

“Give her a few years, it will be 3D elf porn.”

John leaned on the workbench and laughed. 

“Do I want to know?”

“No.” John once set-up holographic projectors in Anwen’s bedroom. It was a running joke for years.

Steven looked up from the tablet. “The bots can do major repairs like the damage to the Williams’ flat. Can you weaponize them?”

“Yeah.” John trailed off, thinking. “We need to to transport them across distances.”

“Portal devices?”

“Yeah.”


	8. Chapter 8

** New Community Clinic; Manchester, England **

Jack Harkness parked the Torchwood van in the adjacent car park. According to the clinic’s website, it should be open. With no lights showing in the windows, and no cars, he found it unlikely. That contradicted the information they received from local constables.  He flipped open his wrist-strap and scanned the area. 

“They knew we were coming?” Gwen asked.

That seemed likely. “There is alien technology near the center of the building.”

“Dangerous?”

“No.”  Something felt off. “I want you to stay out here.”

“Jack…”

“Stay here,” he emphasized as he released his seat-belt. 

Jack climbed out and eyed the area. People walking on the pavement stopped and stared at him and the van. Cars slowed as they drove by. Everything looked normal. Except the uneasiness increased as he crossed the lot. He paused outside the door and scanned again. Nothing changed.

Conversations with the Cardiff city attorney came to mind as he used tech to unlock the door. She argued scanning for alien tech was unlawful search and that it didn’t meet the requirements for probable cause. He doubted the local police department set it up to arrest him. But he’d seen dumber things.

The door opened without a problem. A silent building greeted him. Jack entered slowly. It was quiet as a tomb, he thought. While he had nothing but a feeling, he knew there was a problem. His reaction was as suspicious as the unexplained closure. 

What is this place? Jack wondered as he walked down the halls. It looked like a medical clinic. Except he’d seen NHS facilities. They had guidelines and budgets. He recognized a few pieces of expensive equipment. The ergonomic office chairs weren’t cheap either. He leaned through a waiting room window to look at the desk and noticed the computer tower. It wasn’t real.

A mobile rang faintly in the distance. Then the building shook from an explosion. Jack grabbed the counter and held on. The second detonation cracked the cement floor and brought the ceiling down. 

“Jack?” Gwen’s anxious voice came over the ear com.

“Stay back.” He explained what he knew.

 

** Torchwood Three; Cardiff, Wales **

Ianto Jones entered the hub with Anwen close behind. They spent the morning running errands. With Jack and Gwen heading for Manchester, there wasn’t much that needed to be done. Unless there was a local emergency. Ianto didn’t want to think about that. It would require relying on John. 

Anwen walked over and grabbed a tablet off a nearby workstation. Before the changes, Ianto would have said something. She needed to understand the wrist-strap. And trying to stop her wouldn’t work. Hopefully she was careful. It was a lot to ask of a nine year old.

“Steven’s out of the infirmary.”

Good, he can leave, Ianto thought. John will have no excuse to come back.

Anwen smiled. “They’re in your office.”

Ianto groaned. His attempt to block John was juvenile, but he was tired of seeing “eye candy” any time he accessed his files. The office label was bad enough. It now affected his computer access, and there was no way for him to correct it.

“They’re fixing my bots,” she declared happily.

That didn’t sound good. Ianto followed Anwen as she hurried through the halls. He didn’t want to think about what they were doing with the maintenance bots. 

Ianto’s mobile rang, distracted him, as the door opened to his office. He checked the screen. “Morning.”

“We have a problem.” Gwen sounded like her adrenaline was pumping. “The clinic blew. I can talk to Jack, but I can’t get to him. He’s concerned the building isn’t safe.”

“Tell me you’re not in the building.”

“No. Jack insisted I stay in the van. I called local PD to cordon off the area. But I don’t know if it’s safe.”

“Hold on.” Ianto took a deep breath and walked into his office. “Can you get to Manchester quickly?” Both John and Steven around Cardiff quickly without transportation. 

“Yeah,” Steven said. “What happened?”

Ianto switched his mobile to speaker. “Gwen, Steven and John are here. With me and Anwen.”

“We can get to you within minutes,” Steven said. 

Gwen repeated what little she knew.

“Ask Jack if he can send me or Steven scan data,” John said. “We need to know what type of explosive.”

John’s wrist-strap chimed. He flipped his open and reviewed the details. He than transferred them to a tablet, and handed it to Ianto. “Gwen, have the police establish an eight block radius, if they haven’t already. Tell Jack it’s a V15 situation. It’s going to take awhile to get him out of there.”

“What does that mean?” Gwen asked.

John ignored the question. “Our priority is to get you out. Then we send in bots.” He looked at Steven. “We need a bot replicator. And a lot of matter.”

“I can’t build that. You need to stay here.”

“Are you up for getting Gwen?”

She argued. “I’m not leaving.”

John picked up a handful of stun pellets and handed them to Steven. He nodded as he removed a device from his pocket. Then turned and walked out of the office.

“Steven is meeting you. We need more details on the area.” John motioned toward the speaker button on Ianto’s mobile.

Ianto tapped it and lifted the phone to his ear. He had an idea of what they were about to do and he didn’t like it. “Is there a way to set up a relay to talk to Jack?” 

“Once we have a bot in place.”

“How long?”

“A few minutes,” John said. “I know you don’t trust me. Nothing I say or do will change that.”

The pain in his voice sounded genuine. It fit with everything they’d seen so far. Except John had conned them before with bombs because of a diamond. He shot Owen. Left Gwen to die. And impulsively pushed Jack off a roof. It was too much to forgive.

An unfamiliar alarm sounded. Ianto quickly accessed the hub using a tablet. Not wanting to believe it, he ran a diagnostic on the garage door. It wasn’t an error. Someone breached the door. CCTV showed a four person team wearing black clothes that somehow distorted CCTV.

 

** “I wish I could trust you.”  ** (Thor)

** “Trust my rage.”  ** (Loki)

Thor 2: The Dark World

 


	9. Part 2

** William Haulage; Cardiff, Wales **

** Tuesday, August 9, 2021 **

Steven Carter arrived in the car park trying to stay upright while holding Gwen. He had to use a stun pellet because she wasn’t willing to leave Jack. Arguing would have been dangerous. While Steven had no idea what a V15 bomb did, he knew from previous experience that John and Jack used abbreviations when something didn’t translate. It meant they encountered a similar technology while working for the Time Agency. 

Unable to carry her, Steven checked for her mobile. Going through an unconscious woman’s pockets was not something he cared to think about. He could only assume she had Rhys’ number in her contacts. Steven needed to hand her off before he passed out from exertion or pain. The fingerprint ID made it more awkward. If anyone walked by, it would be difficult to explain.

Focus, Steven told himself as the pain made his vision blur. Only then did he realize he was going to have to explain the situation. As much of the truth as possible, he thought, as the mobile rang. There was a bomb. Jack’s hurt. There is a problem at the hub.

“Forget something?” Rhys asked.

“Mr. Williams, this is Steven Carter. I’m in the car park with Gwen. There was a situation. She’s unconscious and I’m too hurt to get her inside.”

“With London?” Rhys sounded skeptical.

The man survived more than a decade of marriage to a Cardiff Torchwood agent, Steven reminded himself. “No. I work with John.”

“I will be right out.”

Great, he’s going to shoot me, Steven thought. As expected, Rhys was armed, but he approached from an unexpected direction. Steven heard the door open. He hoped Rhys would see Gwen and not shoot. Steven had to give Rhys credit, for a civilian, he had solid tactics. 

“Mr. Williams,” Steven said, hoping to defuse the situation. “Jack needs help. The hub is not responding.” With as bad as he sounded, it didn’t have to sell the urgency. 

Rhys stepped around the back of a lorry. He lowered his gun. “What happened?”

Steven explained what he knew as his vision blurred again. It must have been obvious. Rhys walked over and took Gwen. Good timing, Steven thought, as Gwen started to wake up. He needed to leave before she explained her version of events. 

 

** Torchwood Three **

John Hart consulted his wrist-strap and didn’t like what he saw. The four man team had impressive distortion technology. He had to rely on energy readings to determine what type of armor and weapons they had, and suspected advanced destabilizers. In 2049, Torchwood had basic weapons and prototypes. While he’d seen various corporations with advanced alien technology, this was new. 

“They have weapons that can disrupt Anwen’s Rift ability.”

“How?” Ianto sounded suspicious.

John had no idea. “It fits with the explosive used in Manchester.” Except the destabilizers which were specific to Earth.

“Will the bots work?” Anwen asked.

“As a distraction.” John knew he had to consider the possibility they could anticipate his actions. “We need to do something unexpected.”

“Can the bots functioned shielded?” Ianto asked.

John looked up.

“Program the bots to dissolve their clothes.”

That definitely qualified as unexpected. 

“How they react will tell us if they’re local.”

John nodded as he remotely accessed the bots using his wrist-strap. “Do you have downloaded music or movies?” They couldn’t access the Internet. 

Anwen nodded. “For the glitter program.”

“The what?” Ianto asked.

“Anwen tried to reprogram one of the bots to play music and throw glitter.” John eyed the list and didn’t recognize the titles. “Are any of these obnoxious?”

 

Ianto Jones watched the four intruders trying to adapt to the loss of most of their clothes. The bots had been unable to destroy pieces of their armor and the head piece that distorted camera footage. They looked like a reality police show with their faces glowing.

“This is more than Torchwood block ops,” John commented absently. “This technology is modified correctly.”

“Are they after me?” Anwen asked quietly.

Ianto reached out and set a hand on her shoulder. “You’re safe.”

“John, can you create a video of me? To play on the access panels. Maybe one of the bots.”

“Why?” He sounded distracted.

“If someone sent four men with advanced tech to abduct one little kid. They think I’m dangerous.”

John looked at Ianto. “If it worked, we could use that as a distraction. Without their armor, we can hit them.”

It sounded solid. Except Ianto didn’t trust John. Breaching the hub was complicated and close to impossible. It required inside knowledge. Which John had. If Anwen was gone, he might have control of Global. There were problems with that theory. If he wanted to harm Anwen or try to force control of the hub, he didn’t need the high end thugs.

“Where are we securing Anwen?”

She replied, “If they have access to the computer, or my GPS, I can make them think I’m somewhere else.”

“Secured quarantine.” Ianto had concerns. Not just about John. “They had to anticipate problems.”

“Distraction?” John looked back at the tablet. “How did they intend to get Anwen out of the hub?” 

“What if they’re getting their information from London?” An idea was forming in Ianto’s mind. “HR received a fake domestic violence report. If the people behind this thought they were breaking into a Torchwood facility like London, and the only person protecting Anwen was how I’m seen there…”

Anwen quickly found something on her tablet. “I copied this from YouTube.” She played a clip from Resident Evil showing the holographic Red Queen from The Hive. “You’re all going to die down here.” She repeated the phrase and sounded just as creepy.

Ianto almost asked the obvious. How did you get access? She used her wrist-strap, hub access or both to override the Internet nanny. It also explained how she knew she could provide an inaccurate GPS location. 

“They’re naked and confused. Scaring them could help.” Anwen smiled. “Or if they think a kid is trapped in here with her babysitter, it will fit what they think they know.”


	10. Chapter 10

** New Community Clinic; Manchester, England **

Jack Harkness shifted slightly, the cramp position in the rubble made it painful. Moving didn’t help. Resigned, he checked his wrist-strap again. The situation was volatile and getting worse. From Gwen’s last message, he suspected she’d been removed from the area by force. While he didn’t want to trust his team to John, it was the right decision. 

His ear com clicked. “Jack,” Steven said.

“Where is Gwen?”

“With Rhys. When I get you out of there, I would appreciate you convincing them not to shoot me.”

Jack smiled despite everything. “Gwen refused to leave?”

“Yeah.” Steven hesitated. “Did you get a hub notification?”

“What happened?”

“I don’t know. When I left, John was prepping bots. He needed to build something to replicate more. Or I would have stayed.” Steven sounded stressed. “I can’t get you out of there. And it’s not safe for me to stay.”

“Did the police expand the barricade?”

“Yeah. The energy coming off the building is causing the evacuation. The constables are assisting where they can.”

Jack wished he could talk to Gwen. His cell phone wouldn’t work with the interference. The problem was more than the bomb. “There could be another problem.” That he had no idea how to explain. “I had a similar uneasy feeling approaching the fake cleaning company.”

“Could it have been some kind of warning?”

Jack hadn’t considered that yet. “Yes.”

“I need to go. The energy is…” Steven trailed off. “I will figure out how to get you out.”

 

** Blocks from New Community Clinic **

Steven Carter stood in a doorway watching the police set up a command station. He used his wrist-strap to route police radio through the ear com. Police were feeling the effects of the bomb and had increased the size of the barricaded area. He needed help. Regardless of Gwen’s current opinion of him, she didn’t have the resources necessary. There were too many questions about Torchwood’s involvement to risk calling London. Two groups came to mind. The Refuge was probably the best equipped, but he had no idea how to contact them.

Unsure what else to do, Steven found his mobile and checked his contacts. He tapped connect and wondered if it was a mistake. The Sisters were zealots. Even if it related to a large number of missing women, rescuing Jack was not something they would necessarily do. Between the pain and the stress, he wasn’t even sure how to sell the idea. That alone told him he shouldn’t be out of bed.

“I’m going to start getting ideas, gorgeous.” Eilene’s tone didn’t match her words.

“Have you heard about Manchester?”

“Yeah.” Pause. “Do you know what’s happening in Cardiff?”

“Indirectly.” If she meant the hub. “Jack is trapped in the building here. I need to get him out to deal with everything else.”

“How can we help?”

Steven wasn’t sure. “The simplest solution would involve getting a device to him that would let him free himself.” He had heard of a few Rift or psychic abilities that were capable of it. But he didn’t know if any of the people were old enough or had been recruited yet. “But it might not be possible. Disassembling the building requires the hub.” 

“I have an idea. Give me some time.” Eilene ended the call.

 

** Torchwood Three; Cardiff, Wales **

John Hart pressed his back to a wall and listened. As attacks went, the situation was ridiculous. He needed to take down four men with alien weapons and no clothes. The bot trick might have backfired. It fit the scenario that Anwen and Ianto were alone. Otherwise, the men should have left.

The list of things that didn’t make sense were growing. How did they expect to get Anwen out? If they had future information, why didn’t they know the hub was upgraded? Or that Ianto was like Jack? It made John think about his and Steven’s circumstances. The men might have been given a task with partial information. For any number of reasons. No one in their right mind would break-in knowing what Anwen or Ianto were capable of.

When the signal came, John smiled, and waited. The audio recording followed, sounding vicious. As expected, the men moved away looking for a defensible position. It supported the theory they were from earth, current or future. The creature they were running from was a well-known herbivore common in children’s programming.

When they chose the expected hiding place, John started moving again. The downside to their lack of clothes was a lack of noise. He had to be especially careful. It was difficult to know their exact movements or location. His wrist-strap vibrated. The notification indicated an increase in energy, suggesting a weapon he hadn’t identified earlier.

Why were you prepared to defend against aliens? John wondered. Did they expect Ianto to release the Weevils being held? Or the pterodactyl to attack them?

Without more information, John went with the plan. He threw one stun pellet after another. It took twice as many as expected. Rather than collapse from repeated stuns, the fourth one ran at him. He waited until the man was nearly to him before holding out his leg. The man fell face first one the floor.

“Stay down.” John kicked the intruder’s weapon down the hall. He doubted the man could untangle himself from the impromptu toga. 

“Who are you?”

“A friend of Jack’s.” It worked. “Do you have any idea what he’s going to do when he finds out you tried to abduct his boyfriend?” John hoped the man would correct him. He might get some information.

“What?” The man sounded confused. It wasn’t just the multiple failed stun attempts. “What would anyone want his fuck toy for?”

“I don’t know. He’s pretty?” 

The man swore. “We were targeting the bints protecting the girl.”

That took John a moment to process. “You broke into a Torchwood office to target the Sisters?” What kind of idiot attacked them in Cardiff? “Why?”


	11. Chapter 11

** Hughes Flats; Cardiff, Wales **

Gwen Cooper reviewed the latest email from Manchester in Jack’s home office. The investigators believed Jack walked into a trap. She suspected it was intended to kill them both. As always, the question was why. The following attack on the hub was probably related. 

“Why isn’t Ianto answering his phone?” Rhys demanded as he paced outside the door.

Based on the system error messages and inconsistent remote scans, the hub was in lock-down. CCTV footage from the garage showed the door had been forced open. Gwen hadn’t known that was possible. It probably explained the lock-down, and most of the communication problem. The land line had been disconnected at a nearby substation. Neither Ianto nor Anwen’s mobile’s registered. Unless John was involved, or the intruders had comparable technology, they were still in the hub.

Gwen’s mobile rang. She picked it up from the desk. Finally, Tosh called her back. “Hey.”

“It’s gotten crazy here,” Tosh said quietly. “A reporter called claiming he received a report that one of the Torchwood people that helped resolved Miracle Day hadn’t been promoted since and was being treated badly.”

“Why does anyone care?” Gwen pinched the bridge of her nose.

Tosh explained, “There have been three major scandals involving gay men not receiving promotions in the last several months.”

“That has to be connected to the fake video and HR complaint.” 

“Yeah. The reporter quoted some of the jokes.”

Gwen had no idea how that fit in with the probable human-trafficking and Moss-Probert. “What’s being done about Manchester?”

“A man claiming to be a Torchwood agent is coordinating with local constables. No one here knows who he is.”

Jack could explain that when they freed him from the building, Gwen thought. “Any reports from Cardiff?”

“Dr. Corse said there was a technical problem with the hub, and Ianto was working to resolve it.” 

She knows about the lock-down and didn’t report it. “Thanks. If you hear anymore, call me.”

 

** Torchwood London; London, England **

Owen Harper wondered about his job. Someone in Cardiff, possibly the city attorney, complained that he overstepped his authority by using London credentials to get a detective constable to cooperate with Torchwood. It didn’t seem to matter that Cardiff PD had removed obvious alien artifacts from a crime scene and lied about it. Or that their walk through discovered the office was fake. Despite the varied conflicts with Jack, life had been easier in Cardiff. Rebuilding Torchwood London seemed to increase the work not lessen it. And add to various problems. 

Owen stopped outside Tosh’s lab. “What broke?” He knew everyone in Cardiff and didn’t question their motives.

The man said casually, but looked nervous. “A power relay.” 

It was a common problem. “How bad is it?” That you’re repairing the electricity without turning off the power, Owen thought. 

“Not bad. I had to isolate this section to replace a part. It will take a few minutes.”

Owen nodded. “Thanks.” And continued into the lab. 

Whoever the man was, he knew nothing about repairing electrical systems and wasn’t used to lying. He had the right uniform, but his cover story was bad, and he provided too much information without details. Unless it was an elaborate set-up, the man wasn’t expecting someone to walk by.

“Do you have time for lunch?” Owen asked. An unexpected suggestion might surprise her, but anyone watching shouldn’t find it problematic. They were in a relationship. Even if it rarely involved spontaneous meals. While they had friends at work, it was doubtful they knew him well enough to predict his behavior. 

Tosh looked frustrated. “I guess.” She looked at him. “Where?”

He had no idea. He hadn’t intended to ask until he saw the fake repairman in the hallway. “The place you like with the weird plants.”

From her expression, she suspected something was wrong. “What about that seafood place?” 

 

Toshiko Sato wondered what was wrong the entire walk to Owen’s car. After the doors were closed, she set a speech distortion device on an arm rest, and activated it. She had questions. Owen’s tense body language told there was a problem. When he recommended a restaurant he didn’t like for lunch, she knew it was more than a bad day. Even if it was personal, they didn’t need an audience.

“What?”

Owen explained the supposed relay repair. “I’ve had odd computer and phone problems all day. Two email errors said received messages had been viewed before I saw them.”

Tosh had similar experiences before Owen returned from Cardiff. “I think someone is trying to discredit Jack. Someone here.” It sounded paranoid. But they both thought they were followed or watched at times. “Before the fake hostage situation. A woman, claiming to be from supplies, came to the lab and asked me questions about hub orders. She asked about Jack and the facility.” Pause. “I assumed she was interested.” She’d been asked more than once for an introduction.

“What did you say?”

“Not much. I told her to call Ianto and ask.” That part of the conversation was the strangest. “She didn’t want to ask him about his own supply orders. It’s why I thought it was about Jack.” Tosh should have known there was a problem. She’d gotten complacent working in London, she thought. 

Owen set a hand on Tosh’s knee. “We need to get out of the middle.”

That was easier said than done. “How?”

“We pick-up Misae at school. Then tell HR I’m having side-effects from the accident in Cardiff. Medical asked a lot of unnecessary questions. I said I didn’t feel well.”

Tosh set a hand on Owen’s. “I think Cardiff is having more trouble than usual. Gwen sounded off. I don’t think she’s in Manchester. Or the hub.”

“It’s not safe here.”

Tosh agreed with that much. “We need to get Misae.” They could figure out where they were going and doing after that. If someone targeted them for information or access, their daughter could be in danger. 


	12. Chapter 12

**Torchwood Three; Cardiff, Wales**

Ianto Jones could just imagine Jack’s comments about stripping armor from mostly naked intruders. Or at least what he would have said before the video. Ianto thought about the hub CCTV footage, and showing it to Jack for the jokes. It was counterintuitive, like Jack’s flirting suggestion. But it was normal. They needed normal.

“Anwen said she found clothes in the infirmary storage room,” John said after rolling the last of the intruders off a stretcher in the secured cell.

Ianto went with the first thought that came to mind. “Geneva convention?”

John nodded. “’Photographing them nude might violate international law.’” He chuckled.

Ianto suspected it did. But terrorists armed with alien technology attacking a Torchwood office would be lucky if The Hague acknowledged they had rights nevertheless Great Britain. “Any idea who they are?”

“No. One sounded Eastern European.” John shook his head. “They had advanced technology similar to Moss-Proberts’ men. Equally disposable.” Pause. “If he told me the truth, they used Anwen as bait. They were targeting a group of women that worship the Rift.” His expression said he thought the men were crazy. “Picture a militant women’s shelter. Their enforcers have Rift abilities.”

“The weapons.” Ianto wondered if they expected to fight aliens. “Could it be some type of distraction?”

“It could. The attack on Jack, and the HR nonsense, could be an effort to change Cardiff leadership.”

Ianto didn’t like that idea. If a Torchwood black ops group was somehow involved with the genetic experimentation, the human-trafficking, or both, then taking out the office guarding Cardiff made sense. Except it was possible the fake HR reports would have the opposite affect. If anyone believed it, an HR investigator would arrive to investigate. Long-term domestic violence should be pretty obvious to a trained investigator.

“Lock-down was intentional.” Anwen carried a big bag into the room adjacent to the secured cell. “Ordering the computer to end it didn’t work. So I asked why it happened.” She motioned toward the transparent wall without looking at it. “They triggered it.”

“They might not have known what they were doing.” John used his wrist-strap to scan the pile of armor they’d removed. “Hub security mistook for Cybermen.”

Ianto closed his eyes. That was either something he did years ago or what Jack did in response. “How did they know?” He said quietly.

John said, “After the Institute’s destruction, it could have been assumed.”

Ianto shook his head. “No.” Lisa was the only reason the hub had Cybermen defenses. And that was his fault. Someone outside the hub knew what he did. And the only way they would know is if they were connected to the Institute. If you knew, Ianto thought, why didn’t you try to stop me?

 

**Empty Warehouse; Manchester, England**

Jack Harkness blinked at the new location. Then looked around. Moving his head made him nauseous. The roaring in his ears suggested he passed out. The last thing he remembered was sending Steven a scan update. He had no idea how he got out of the clinic.

“Welcome back.” Steven walked over and sat on the floor next to him while a vaguely familiar woman stood back.

“How did I get here?” Jack didn’t like the way he sounded. Somewhere between exhausted and stoned.

“Do you know what a teleporter is?” Steven asked. “A person. Not technology.”

Jack had heard rumors, but he’d never met one. “Torchwood?” Although he doubted it. If London had a teleporter, their tactics would be very different.

“The Sisters in Birmingham.” She moved to stand behind Steven. “I’m Clarissa.”

Jack smiled. “Nice to meet you.”

“You should sit down.” Steven looked up at her. “The energy has side-effects.”

“He’s handling it.” She argued slightly, but sat next to him anyway.

“Good stamina,” Jack said, trying for a joke. From Steven’s expression, it was a bad idea.

“Your injuries are similar to mine. The energy is interfering with healing.”

Jack didn’t like the sound of that. It could be a coincidence, similar technology or a connection. Resistance to Nanogenes was unusual. He couldn’t remember anything preventing him from regenerating. “Call Gwen.”

Steven held up Jack’s mobile. Steven had gained access somehow and was going through the contact list. He pressed connect and switched it to speaker phone as it rang.

“Jack?” Gwen sounded worried.

“Yeah.”

“It took a while to free him,” Steven explained tentatively.

“What happened at the hub?” Jack asked before Gwen could respond to Steven.

“The garage door was breached. It’s in lock-down.” Gwen sounded worried. “One of the maintenance bots repaired the damage. I don’t know if it’s automated.”

Jack had no idea. “Nothing from Ianto?”

“Or Anwen.” Gwen hesitated. “Depending on the type of lock-down, it could be hours.”

“Are you in my office?” Jack knew he needed to focus. But the roaring in his ears was back.

“Yeah.”

“Check for system notifications. It might tell you what type of lock-down.”

“I did. It claims there was a hostile alien. But CCTV from the garage shows four men, or what I assume were men based on clothes and movement.”

A memory nagged at the back of Jack’s mind. The energy still affected his thoughts. “When you try to remote access the system, what type of error message is generated?”

“Containment.”

Lisa, Jack thought suddenly. If it was a Cyberman lock-down, it would require a lot of effort to resolve it. “I need to get back to Cardiff.” He pushed himself up, lost his balance and fell a few inches back to the cement floor.

 

**Torchwood Three; Cardiff, Wales**

John Hart sat on the floor in the doorway between the hallway and the Global mainframe room. He used his wrist-strap and a dedicated tablet computer. It appeared Jack personalized security, including a lock-down specific to Cybermen. John couldn’t determine if there were notes explaining why.

“What’s wrong with Uncle Ianto?” Anwen approached in the hall.

John suspected it had something to do with the Cyberman attack on the Institute. Ianto survived it and returned home to Cardiff. There had to be a reason Jack not only installed specific defenses but Ianto reacted badly to them. John had no idea how to ask.

“The intruders faked a type of alien Ianto’s afraid of.”

Anwen sat on the floor in the hallway across from him. “How did they know?”

John suspected Steven was right about an Institute connection. “I don’t know.” The more important question was what was worth the effort.

“They’re really dumb.” Anwen sounded stressed. “They tried to kill Uncle Jack. Which isn’t possible. They broke in here to use me for bait. To attack women more dangerous than I am. And what, kill Uncle Ianto? That isn’t possible either.” She had good points.

“It might be a distraction.”

“A bad one. Threatening Ianto guarantees Jack will never let it go.”

A thought occurred to John. What if the fake HR report, videos, and badly planned hub attack were part of the future’s changes? It caused a lot of personal problems. But could fix others.

Anwen waited a few minutes. “If I have control of Global, and Global can override the hub, why can’t I take control and let us out?”

It would require overriding Jack’s hub authority with the mainframe. It wasn’t John’s first choice. Unless he could find another, he’d have to do it.

“Uh, John.” Anwen stood suddenly, looking nervous. “Someone with a lot of Rift energy and no chronons just entered the hub.”

“The person would have had to walk through a wall.” John’s wrist-strap than issued a security warning. He quickly reviewed it. “She did.” He stood.

“I can protect you.”

“Open your wrist-strap. Say ‘Identity Anwen Williams.’”

She did and the computer clicked.

“‘Command Authorization Anwen Williams.’”

She repeated it and the computer acknowledged her.

“’Command override. End lock-down.’”

Anwen said it, and their wrist-straps received a notification.

John checked his mobile. Relieved, he quickly found Steven’s number and pressed connect. It rang.

“Hey.”

“Can you call your friend Eilene? One of hers just entered the hub. An intruder claimed they were after them. It could still be some type of trap.” John did not want to be on the receiving end of an angry Sisters response team.

Quiet voices filled the background.

“Clarissa will call it in.” Steven paused, listening to Jack. “Is tad-cu okay?”


	13. Chapter 13

** Driving : London, England **

Owen Harper checked the mirrors again. The car definitely followed them from school. It’s driver made no effort to hide herself. She wanted to be seen. If she intended to abduct Misae or attack them, the school would have been a good location. Unless someone anticipated their actions, or overheard them despite the device, the woman was interested in Misae.

“Did anything happen today?”

“I got referred to the school counselor.” She sounded amused.

Owen knew better. “Why?” 

“Mrs. Waithe asked the class which of our parents we took after the most. I told her I was just like my dad.”

Tosh covered her mouth with her hand and tried to keep from laughing.

“Aspiring to be a jaded arse is a bad life goal at thirteen.”

Owen reminded himself the attitude was good. When they first brought her home three years earlier she wouldn’t look him in the eyes. If he raised his voice or moved too fast, she flinched. One of the psychiatrists said she’d never recover. Adopting his attitude was much better than that.

“Misae.”

“Nothing weird.” She hesitated. “What’s going on?”

“We don’t know yet.” Owen checked the mirrors again. “Call Gwen.”

Tosh quickly found her mobile. “Could this have followed you from Cardiff?” She checked her contacts.

“Or the recent homicide investigation.” By itself, Owen doubted it. The murders were somehow connected to everything else happening in Cardiff.

He stopped behind a queue of cars at a traffic light. With the exception of the strange law enforcement rejection of Three, Owen could think of nothing unexpected recently. Working for Torchwood, they saw everything from malfunctioning technology to lost alien tourists. Most of it was routine. Since he and Tosh relocated to London, they’d seen fewer crises and life-threatening situations. He could go weeks without seeing a possible death by alien misadventure. Last month he’d been loaned to Birmingham to identify mundane fire victims.

“Uh, dad,” Misae said nervously from the backseat.

Owen turned in time to see a lorry speeding from a car park between two buildings. Directly at them. He threw the car into reverse and backed up onto the pavement, knocking over several trash bins. The lorry struck the bonnet with a crunch and kept going. 

He released his safety belt and reached for Tosh. “Are your feet trapped?”

“No.”

“Misae,” he turned to look between the front seats. 

She looked pale. “I’ll live.” 

 

** Hughes Flats; Cardiff, Wales **

Gwen Cooper sat unsure of what to focus on. They had multiple situations, lots of possible information, and a growing list of questions. The attacks on Jack, the hub, and Owen and Tosh had no obvious connection. Jack needed to regenerate fully before he gave a coherent report. Owen and Tosh would provide details when they arrived. They still hadn’t heard from the hub.

The computer chimed with a notification. She quickly checked the system. The lock-down ended. Most of the details went over her head, but it looked like someone overrode Jack’s authority. She had no idea how that was possible and doubted Jack was in any condition to discuss it. Gwen grabbed her mobile and entered Anwen’s number. 

“Mum.” Anwen sounded good. 

“What happened?”

Rhys poked his head in. Gwen motioned to him. Then switched the mobile to speaker.

“Uncle Ianto and John are still trying to figure that out.” Anwen explained the attack, the fake Cyberman tech, and why she overrode the lock-down. “I think someone should add narration to the raid footage. Like a Torchwood training video.” 

Gwen chuckled. She needed it.

“Are you safe?” Rhys asked.

“Yeah.” 

As much as Gwen wanted to keep talking to her daughter, they needed to know what was happening to resolve it. “I need to speak to Ianto.”

“He’s talking to the Sisters.”

Gwen realized they did have a connection among all three situations. The same group was involved in all three situations. They were observing Anwen and Misae for some reason. All the missing women in Manchester would definitely get the attention of a women’s group. 

She reached for a tablet. An additional piece of information came to mind. There was one sizable city in England that didn’t have missing women. “Are they connected to Birmingham?”

 

Torchwood Three

Ianto Jones stood, waiting in the fake tourist office. He was meeting with a woman that concerned John. He recommended that Gwen talk to her. Or possibly Anwen. For some reason, John thought a woman walked through a wall during the lock-down. And immediately instructed Anwen to override Jack’s authority. Something they might not be able to fix. It made Ianto paranoid. But John looked spooked. Anwen knew more than she said, but Ianto needed to wait until she wasn’t with John to ask. 

The door opened and an oddly familiar woman stepped in. He couldn’t place her, but he knew he’d seen her before. “I’m Eilene.”

“Ianto.” He gave it a moment. “We had a security breach.”

Eilene nodded, indicating she already knew.

“One of the intruders claimed your organization was the target. Not Torchwood.”

“Doubtful.”

It didn’t make sense to him either. “They were carrying weapons strong enough to target aliens. Except when faced with the sounds of one, they fled.”

“Did they have anti-Rift energy weapons?”

“Yep.” It was why they suspected the intruders were after Anwen.

Eilene looked confused. “Targeting Anwen is stupid. Her ability isn’t obvious or widely known. But us?”

“It’s possible they were mimicking the attack style of the abductors in Manchester. The technology description was similar.”

“Do you know about the hit-and-run in London?” She must have concluded he didn’t. “Ms. Sato and her family have minor injuries.” Pause. “We learned of an abduction threat against Misae. Potentially related to work Dr. Harper did in Birmingham. While we didn’t think someone would try it, observers were assigned.”

Ianto wondered if someone wanted Torchwood working with the Sisters. If the London information was accurate it could tie to a well-planned, badly executed attack on the hub. “How did you meet Steven?”


	14. Chapter 14

** Torchwood Three; Cardiff, Wales **

Gwen Cooper stood in the infirmary watching Ianto run additional medical scans on Jack. The technology Stephen used to return quickly from Manchester increased the energy affect. They were both in and out of consciousness. The question was why. They might have a better idea when Owen arrived. With John trying to resolve the situation in Manchester, it might be possible to keep Owen from finding out about John again.

The door opened and Anwen entered. “The idiots have been fed and watered.” She was handling the latest crisis better than the adults.

“Anymore notifications?” Ianto asked.

“No.” Anwen moved over to Jack’s side. “Why isn’t he healing?”

Gwen set a hand on her daughter’s shoulder. “We don’t know.” 

“Interference,” Jack mumbled. He opened his eyes and looked at Ianto. “I love you.”

Ianto leaned over and whispered something to Jack.

Gwen had seen the exchange twice since she arrived. She suspected from Jack’s tone he was delirious. Which explained the public displays. 

Anwen turned, looking at her mother. “When is Grumpy Cat getting back?” 

“I don’t know.” Gwen wondered if they needed to discuss what happened.

“Me and Misae can watch movies we’re not suppose to and design bot programs.” Anwen’s eyes lit up with amusement.

Gwen groaned. “Age appropriate.”

“We can add Mystery Theater 3000 comments to the raider video.” Anwen paused as if to think. “Is raiding while stupid and naked age appropriate?”

“You should be grounded for overriding the movie controls.”

Anwen shook her head. “I’m traumatized. You can’t ground someone who’s been in a home invasion.”

“We need to let them rest,” Ianto said. He walked away from Jack looking tired and worried.

Gwen waited until they were in the hallway to ask. “What’s wrong?”

“I think the energy is still affecting Jack.” Ianto turned away. “You’re okay. Steven’s recovery was set back days.” He groaned, frustrated.

“Chronons. Time energy,” Anwen said. “John said he had to avoid exposure. If it’s on purpose, it could be an anti-Time Agent weapon.”

“Did he do anything suspicious before or during the lock-down?” Gwen asked.

“No,” Ianto said reluctantly. 

Anwen looked at her mother. She wasn’t happy. “You think John is involved?”

Gwen doubted Anwen would listen to any explanation. She liked cowboys and Time Agents. John was both. He sounded like a cliche plot about an aging gunslinger seeking redemption. Except there was nothing romantic about a homicidal junkie with questionable motives. Her daughter wasn’t born when John came to Cardiff originally. She didn’t see what he did. Or who he really was.

“We have to consider everything,” Gwen said. It sounded like a bad excuse. 

“With Uncle Jack unable to help, you need John.”

Which could be the point, Gwen thought. They were forced to trust him.

 

** Blocks from New Community Clinic; Manchester, England **

John Hart remotely adjusted the bot programming. The modified bot shields worked, but had limits. After twenty minutes, the energy permanently disrupted operations. Energy contamination made it impossible to reuse. That meant no portal devices and a continual need for raw materials. The replicator he built hastily had more limitations. 

Large bots salvaged scrap metal from nearby yards and brought it to the warehouse by portal device. The replicator built small bots to conserve materials. Then they used the sewers to move between locations. They lost several minutes of functionality before reaching the clinic.

It was impractical, time consuming, and the only option available. Decontaminating the bots would take longer than dismantling the building. He had no idea how long it would take to resolve the energy. That required finding the amplifier. He wasn’t even sure the type. The unusual technology reminded him of the crystal egg at the transportation company and the unexplained energy distribution. Both were insane puzzles that shouldn’t have been on Earth.

“Are you making progress?” Clarissa asked, still sounding tired. Based on what she said, she had only a small exposure. 

“Slowly.” John knew he was missing something. “Do you know anything about this clinic?” He had no doubt it was a trap. Either for Jack and Gwen or a Sisters response team. But the technology used was unusual. John suspected the bombs had been built from something else. But he had no idea what.

“There were rumors they were paying for genetic testing. DNA mapping.” Clarissa wasn’t convinced. “I have not spoken to anyone who was offered money or paid.” Pause. “I specialize in domestic rescues. I didn’t participate in other investigations.”

“Is there someone you can ask?” John looked up from a tablet. “I need accurate information on this facility and any new or short-term clinics in the area.”

“Possibly.” Clarissa didn’t looked convinced she should.

“Whoever these people are, they contaminated city blocks with exotic energy. If a larger bomb detonated, or this energy can’t be contained, people are going to die.”

She walked away checking her phone contacts.

Life had been much easier as a mercenary, John thought.

 

** Torchwood Three; Cardiff, Wales **

Ianto Jones stood in front of the LCD screen in the conference room with his arms cross. Trying to stay calm. While he normally didn’t mind dealing with Torchwood bureaucracy, he had too much to do. Creating an insane cover story for Stephen dealing with Manchester was annoying. Who cared who did what as long as it was done.

“Jack is dealing with it,” Ianto repeated. “The interference disrupts phones.”

“An unknown man identified himself as a Torchwood agent,” Northcutt repeated.

“No idea. What crime did he commit?” Based on what Stephen said, and Gwen’s police contacts, he took charge while Jack was trapped and coordinated the police effort to evacuate the area.

“Impersonating a Torchwood agent.”

“To do what?”

Northcutt wasn’t amused. “We can’t have people claiming to work for us.”

Ianto couldn’t help but picture how Jack would answer that. He’d said it before. “It happens nightly in bars.” Pause. “Unless the impostor is committing crimes, we have better things to do.”

“I need to speak to Captain Harkness.”

“He’s busy.” Based on scan readings John provided, it would take hours to resolve. 

“Then I need to speak with Mrs. Williams.”

Ianto was losing his temper. “Ms. Cooper is busy. Cardiff currently has several open cases.”

“While Captain Harkness is in Manchester?”

The ridiculous conversation lasted twenty minutes. Ianto had no idea how Northcutt coordinated with the British government. His interrogation style appeared to be pissing people off until they were so angry they blurted out whatever information he wanted.

Anwen entered after the call ended. She looked concerned. “Someone from Torchwood London tried to remote-access the hub. Using codes from the agent-in-charge prior to Uncle Jack. And administrative overrides.”

The man committed suicide in front of Jack. “When?”

Anwen flipped open her wrist-strap and entered instructions. “The last fifteen to twenty minutes.” She looked up. “According to the computer, it came from the same place as the person you were talking to.”

“Do a Global personnel search for Gary Northcutt.” Ianto replayed the conversation in his head. Was it an act?


	15. Chapter 15

** Blocks from New Community Clinic; Manchester, England **

The energy fluctuated. John Hart compared multiple scan readings. It looked like the amplifier suddenly started cycling down. He could only guess it had been remotely deactivated. That fit with the trap theory. Except why did they wait this long. If Jack and Gwen were the only targets, why wasn’t it shutdown after they left. Unless the people behind it didn’t know they had.

John’s wrist-strap indicated a message. “Hey.”

“Uncle Ianto has a question.”

What now? John wondered. 

“Could the intruders have triggered the Cyberman lock-down accidentally?”

“Possibly. The hub identified something they carried. If they didn’t know about Jack’s security, they could have had a different goal in mind.”

“Could it have reset Jack’s command authority without the upgrades?”

“I doubt it.” Although attempting it made more sense than targeting the Sisters. “Anyone trying it might have assumed Jack was from Earth.” Unless the person or persons used the armed intruders as an aggressive Trojan Horse. If that was the case, they would have attempted to force access during the lock-down. “Why?

Anwen explained the remote-access attempts. Ianto added details about the video conference.

“Could he have been trying to determine if Jack and Gwen are still alive?”

“Yep.” 

John checked the energy readings again. “When did that call end?”

“Five minutes ago.”

John nodded. Then explained about the changes. “Either you convinced them Jack and Gwen are alive and they’re shutting it down because it failed. Or they wanted to confirm they’re dead.”

“Come back,” Anwen said. “Now.”

 

Torchwood Three; Cardiff, Wales

Anwen Williams looked at the Global search results. From Stephen’s previous search and her own. There was a reason Uncle Jack didn’t want her running that search. When she checked the origin of the image used for facial recognition, she wished she hadn’t. 

She flipped open her wrist-strap. “John Hart.”

“I’m in Cardiff.”

“Good.” Anwen hesitated. “I found something.” She explained. “What do I do?”

“Give Ianto the information.”

She didn’t like that idea. “He saw the video and threw up.”

“Unless Jack is awake and coherent,” John emphasized, “You need to give the information to Ianto.”

“I wish you were here.”

John hesitated. “I can’t.”

Grumpy Cat, Anwen thought. Uncle Jack and Steven needed him. After that Dr. Harper needed to go. He was angry and dangerous.

“The Manchester energy faded enough to retrieve the van. I will bring it back when it’s decontaminated.”

“You can’t be seen.” She didn’t know the details, but there was a Torchwood unit responding to the clinic site. Her mum confirmed that somehow. 

“I’m using a mini bot and a portal device.” 

“Be careful.”

“Talk to Ianto.” John disconnected.

Anwen stared at her wrist-strap for a moment. Then checked the computer to find Uncle Ianto. She didn’t want to upset him. Giving her mum the results would just delay it. There was no way to avoid it. He was in his office. Anwen realized she could change the name back as she started walking. That might help.

When the door opened, Anwen stepped in, intending to happily tell her uncle the office label was fixed. He sat with his elbows bend, fingers twined and head down. She wondered what happened. The good good news she intended wouldn’t work. And she suspected the Global search information would make it worse. Whatever it was.

“Are you okay?”

“Yep.” Ianto sat back, his expression going neutral as he reached for a tablet. She’d seen him do it before and knew he’d lied.

“The Global search. Northcutt.” Anwen crossed the room unsure what to say about the image. “It connected with a search Uncle Jack wanted before Manchester.” She handed the tablet across his desk. “He had Stephen run a picture.”

“From where?” Ianto looked at her, waiting for an answer.

“The video. The bad one. When dad and I were in Uncle Jack’s flat. Your flat.” She closed her eyes feeling like an idiot.

 

Ianto Jones reviewed the information. While it was likely that Northcutt helped stage the authentic video, and was the reason the real one hadn’t been sent to HR, there was another possibility. People tended to fall for Jack. Ianto smiled. Jack was hard to resist. Northcutt’s attitude could have been concern for Jack’s safety. Even if Northcutt was involved with black ops and attacking the hub, it didn’t mean he wanted Jack dead. The facial recognition search said they hadn’t had much contact. It didn’t rule out the concern possibility.

Northcutt’s Global profile added to the confusion. It claimed he’d been recruited from an intelligence agency before working for Torchwood. It sounded good. With as many former Institute files as he’d seen over the years, Ianto suspected it was fake. Both the government and Torchwood backgrounds. That fit with black op theories. If any of his Institute file was accurate he was assigned to London, but not there, when the Cyberman attacked. 

Something felt wrong. The attack on the hub was clumsy. The fake HR report and video suggested someone was trying to illuminate people’s inaccurate opinions of him. While it looked like the Sisters were in some type of conflict with Torchwood black ops, directly or indirectly, it didn’t explain the rest. The audio message he received after the hub updates suggested the future could have been involved. But he had no idea why.

What could anyone benefit from disrupting his and Jack’s relationship? Unless like the HR conflict, the goal was the opposite effect. Why would anyone want to alter their relationship? Maybe to prevent something worse from coming between them. Or it forced them to accept the compromise wasn’t working. It still came back to why.

Ianto sat back and wondered about the direction him and Jack were headed before the future changes. No matter how much they loved each other. Or the promises they made. The compromise failed.  Ianto wanted a commitment.  Jack wanted an open relationship where they both saw other people.

If the relationship failed, it would complicate running the hub. Ianto knew he and Jack would avoid each other and refuse to admit there was a problem. Rhys’ jealousy would likely flare convinced that Jack would pursue Gwen. They would probably have to hire additional people. Ianto could see the disruption. It reminded him of comments John made. He implied that the problems were worked out. Unless John was the problem. Ianto couldn’t see Jack going back to John. What if it was to prevent Jack from returning to the person he was. That was arrogant, Ianto knew. But Jack’s views mellowed while they were together. The former Time Agent and the soldier seeking answers from The Doctor accepted he couldn’t go back. What would you do, Ianto thought, if you lost me?


	16. Chapter 16

** Torchwood Three; Cardiff, Wales **

Gwen Cooper waited by the large door. With her arms crossed. While she understood Owen’s reaction to John, the fact that he drew a weapon in the hub and accidentally shot Anwen made it less forgiving. With Jack unconscious and a growing list of local problems, they didn’t need the added complication. Gwen reluctantly accepted that John had behaved better recently. He was less likely to challenge Jack.

It rolled aside. Owen led Tosh and Misae into the hub. The memory surfaced of finding him unconscious and Anwen bleeding. That left her and Ianto to get three adults to the infirmary, two of them were unconscious. It was completely avoidable.

“Have the security issues been resolved?” Tosh asked quietly.

“Yes.” Additional programming and security had been installed by the doors. 

“We didn’t know what else to do.”

Under different circumstances, Gwen would have welcomed them back without an issue. The issues before they left for London were long past. “Ianto’s checking if you can be temporarily transferred here. In addition to explaining why, Dr. Corse is currently in Cardiff. Her investigation lasted longer than expected. And HR wants to transfer her.”

“That is a bad idea,” Owen said. “The complaint she filed against me was to cover her suspicious behavior.” Pause. “She wears a full medical scan blocker. It generates a fake medical profile.

Gwen suspected that before talking to Tosh. They were already trying to avoid it. “For right now, we need to deal with the basics. The hub layout has changed.” She had no idea how to explain that. “Tosh, it would be best if I showed you and Misae to the kitchen and dining area. Owen’s needed in the infirmary.”

 

Steven Carter stood back listening to the exchange. Harper was the least of their concerns. If Kindra Corse was in town, the situation was a lot worse than they thought it was. Steven waited for Gwen to lead the trio across the main floor and down the hall before heading up to Jack’s office. 

Using his wrist-strap and a tablet, Steven accessed the files involving Corse. Not only was it Kindra, she was investigating something just as confusing as the Manchester situation. He vaguely remembered an alien spaceship crash while he was mother was having surgery. From taking to Jack, it was last December. He didn’t remember anything else. But there would have been no reason for him to know.

Steven flipped open spoke to his wrist-strap. “John Hart.”

“You should be in bed,” John commented. Surprisingly without making a sexual joke.

“Harper is here.”

“Still.”

Steven wondered if he missed something. Maybe John used his temporary exile to justify going out. After Manchester, he deserved a few hours. “Kindra Corse is in Cardiff. Investigating a bizarre case that potentially ties in with the transportation company energy system.”

“Stay out of her way.”

“Are you all right?”

 

** Near Hughes Flats **

“Yes.” John Hart closed his wrist-strap. He hoped if Steven got suspicious, he checked their CCTV first. 

“Good choice.” Corse sat at the table across from John in the small flat he shared with Steven. 

John knew better than to anger her. Her impressive medical credentials were the least of it. “What do you want?”

“Cooperation. A faction of Torchwood made the mistake of challenging us,” Corse said, referring to the Sisters of Birmingham. “There are activities we won’t tolerate.”

“What’s going on?”

“We resolved the missing women mystery.” 

Not surprising, John thought, as women were their priority. He suspected the Sisters identified residual Rift energy and possibly chronons from his time travel. In some ways, they understood the Rift a lot better than Torchwood.  But it didn’t explain her interest in him. 

Corse turned her laptop around to face him. “They were abducted for testing. We found one of their facilities off the coast of Scotland. Any that test positive are kept. The others were transferred to a fake human-trafficking depot. It will be discovered in Eastern Europe in the next few days.”

“Why?”

“A failed cure for sexually transmitted diseases.” Corse explained, “The treatment was derived from aliens found on a ship salvaged several years ago. But it didn’t work the way the pharmaceutical company thought it did.”

“How is Torchwood involved?” 

“One of the original research and development branches survived the destruction of the Institute. When it gets potentially useful technology, it shops it around. For various reasons, including funding. A scientist misinterpreted research. By the time they discovered the mistake, a lot of people had already been exposed.”

John nodded slightly. “Why are you still here?”

“That salvaged alien ship was involved in research and possibly slaves. More than one alien response team has been sent to retrieve it. The bizarre case your partner mentioned is somehow involved.”

And? John wanted to ask. He waited instead.

“I know who you are Captain John Hart. Time Agent. Mercenary. Torchwood special assignments.” Corse reached into her pocket and removed a small box with a folded piece of paper taped to the top. When she set it on the table, he knew what it was before she opened it. 

How? John wondered. Few people knew about that in the original time line nevertheless here. Even if someone overheard him tell Jack about Varaxi crystals, they wouldn’t know what they were or how to get them. Anwen told him the ones she had came through the Rift. He hadn’t asked the right questions.

“We have local currency, among other things, to offer.”

John sat, staring at the crystals twinkling in the bad overhead lighting. He wondered which answer was the trap. If they knew this much about him, they knew about 2049 and the Anwen there. Corse was trying to buy him or test his loyalty to Torchwood. He had no doubt she could kill him without a second thought.

“Interesting,” Corse said. “I was told you would accept the crystals without hesitation.” Corse closed her laptop and tucked it back in it’s case. “The paper,” she motioned to the note on the box, “Has the name of a good friend to make. He will keep you warm at night. And be useful later on.”


End file.
